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Written by Avery James
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Tuesday, 18 March 2008 |
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Pretty, precise indie-pop, “country-tronica,” high-energy folk rock, avant-noise experimental trios; the sounds of our beloved Bay Area are pretty diverse. Thursday was exciting as it was the day of SXSW’s first Bay Area showcase (“The Bay Area Takeover”) at Austin’s Beauty Bar, put on by the great guys over at www.thebaybridged.com and some other Bay Area production companies. Click that big blue “read more” button for some highlights and pictures.  Social Studies! |
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Written by Avery James
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Saturday, 15 March 2008 |
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An alternate title for this blog post might be "Why I Haven't Slept in Three Days." Last night Fucked Up, a Toronto punk act and No Age, one of my favorite new bands from LA (they're part of the noise/protopunk scene revolving around the Smell, a downtown LA venue) played on a bridge to a few hundred people at around 3AM. J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. was standing a few feet from me ("He's a fan of Fucked Up," explained one of his friends). The bands were incredible. Some pictures: 
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Written by Avery James
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Friday, 14 March 2008 |
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Last night I ran into my friends (introduced in a previous post) the Sadges (as in, Sagittarius), playing an acoustic set on the streets of Austin. The whole band is made up of December babies, I guess. There was a pretty incredible response, and they sounded great. I also got a free bar of soap from somebody, which is way more awesome than it sounds. Check out the pictures (more after the jump)!  |
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Written by Avery James
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Friday, 14 March 2008 |
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Rolling into Austin a bit late, I set about getting my press badge, schedule, etc. There was this interesting moment where I was sent up two flights of escalators, only to be sent down again to wait in a line to get on the very same escalator. SXSW’s whole badge-making computer system went offline for about an hour, dashing my hopes of seeing any of the Wednesday daytime shows, not to mention Van Morrison’s set at La Zona Rosa. Fortunately I was able to catch three sets worthy of attention: Jeremy Jay, the Dodos, and Shearwater. |
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Written by Avery James
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Thursday, 13 March 2008 |
I am currently in Austin, Texas, capital of the state, former stomping ground of George W. Bush, and home to South By Southwest Music Festival, one of the largest music conferences in the United States. It’s tough to describe how overwhelming the festival is. So much is going on that it seems a sin to sit down and write for a moment, especially when I still have to figure out where and when I’m sleeping tonight. The purpose of this blog, however, is to go into some depth on some of the upcoming artists I have been able to see, especially those who have some sort of connection to the beautiful (and wonderfully peaceful, I am realizing) city of Santa Cruz.
I thought I’d start things off by mentioning the gentlemen who shared a car with me for the almost thirty hours to Austin, putting up with my general lack of patience and musical chops, which they all have in spades. I also got some great interviews with them, which I’ll be posting soon. Steve Taylor and the Sadges plus pictures, after the jump. |
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